Ipsita Contemplates

By Chun Ah Hyo And there she was, her assumptions vanishing into thin air. She clung to the nearby chair with her left hand, relying on her belief – as strong as the chair's footing — that it would be enough to prevent her from slipping, even if the hands offering unsolicited support to her right hand faltered and let it go.  She would rather anchor her trust to the frail legs of the old iron chair than to the breathing pulse of a living being's hand. To her surprise, which she realized at that moment as she tried not to fall, her instinct of breaking the fall was overpowered by the thought that an unknown hand was grasping her right hand, helping her. And her hands, which she had always assumed to be long and big enough, fit inside the stranger's hand...with ease. As she stabilized her feet, she knew she must now turn and thank the stranger. Before she could, she heard, "Are you ok?" Instinctively, she replied, "Yes, I am. Thank you so much."  She repo...

I have always known it's not my cup of tea. It never was. Nevertheless, I have always loved them, still do, and if I may dare utter words for the future, I will always... always love them.  Poems have always intrigued me. So, even if I wasn't blessed with a talent for poetry, I kept on reading poems. I would read poetry books, collect poems from various different sources, and sometimes recite them (The Highwayman by Alfred Noyes being my favorite) the way I supposed they were meant to be. My first inspiration to learn new languages came from poets who wrote in languages I had not known before.  Despite all that, I never gave it a try. I never even dared to attempt writing poems for the longest time. Having started my writing journey with stories and articles, I never even thought of writing something that could resemble a poem. Until that day.... a day in the November of 2010 when I wrote "Reflection" followed by "And the moon got lost" a few months later. I...

The Language of Food : <German Edition> If I have to find a beginning to the story, I would say it started with the chicken croquettes. It is French but food (and words) evade boundaries, and sometimes dimensions. Those six golden pieces of croquettes provided a much needed sense of familiarity on that particular day. That was the beginning or day zero of my German classes. Why did I choose croquettes? Because the language that I had learned last was French. It might not make sense, but that’s how I operate. And I, for some reason, tried to take a peek on the memory lane from those days. I don’t know if we can call it a walk down memory lane, but it definitely sprinkled bits and pieces of nostalgic moments from the days when I was learning French. With each bite of the croquettes, its crunch invoked the memory of the page-long essays that I wrote based on the different aspects of the French cities, and the soft chicken and cheesy insides brought back a sense of comfort/familia...

It all started with a dream. When I say that, I do not mean it figuratively. It was quite literally a dream. The process of transforming the story snippets into a book will probably be a longer tale to tell. But the process to unveil it to the world (in a broader sense) was no less of a dream (figuratively). It all started with the important decision: whether to have an offline book launch event or not. I mean there already had been an online launch. Would it feel redundant to have it again? There were a lot of apprehensions. However, the decision weighed in favor of having it, and thank goodness it happened so. I think it was towards the later-third of July (probably July 21) when the planning phase started. First step was to search for an optimal venue - a place which would look apt irrespective of the number of guests in attendance. We needed a place which would not look too empty if none of the guests turned up but should also be sufficiently big to seat all the guests. That was th...

With all the work related to the book release of my debut novel “Inexplicable Distances” going on, I never knew how to unveil it. Or if I wanted to unveil it at all. But who knew things would unravel the way they did, and I would end up scheduling an event for it! The online launch event was for the e-book version of the book. Initially, there were no plans of having it at all. I mean, it was there… lurking in some corner, but I never thought of it actively. Just the evening before the e-book release date (June 27, Monday), one of my friends suggested me to go ahead with it. That was the motivation that I was probably looking for. Immediately the work started which began with the search for a place to have the online launch (since a calm place was needed with no disturbance). Though it was last minute, the place got finalized by 9 pm. Afterwards, there were not much left to be done… or rather not much with external dependencies involved. The next step was to finalize the event platform...

It's you And your alluring smile That made it what it was That moment And every other moment Every day Every second Meaning of it I still wonder about After writing a few verses Feelings still sprout  "Why do so many lines you carve?" They ask But the world hasn't seen your smile the way I have The universes may change And the worlds within it may too But that glimmering smile  Is beyond eternal Brightness of a zillion lumens And of hopes anew Copyright © 2022 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

An engineering and architectural marvel, Konark Sun temple, has much more in store than just what the eye meets. It associates tales that span multitude domains and harbor significance in every walk of life and can mesmerize any soul who wishes to seep in the enigmatic charisma of this masterpiece. Many a times, I have thought of jotting down my thoughts on this. However, I have always found myself mesmerized by its enchanting mystery so much so that I end up forgetting the line of thoughts. Its happening now as well, but I will try my best to capture as much as I can. The stories wrapped around the temple have situations of varied fields in them, which includes but are not limited to Philosophy, Science, astronomy, cosmology, architecture, and engineering. Primarily, one tale surfaces around this. For the uninitiated, I would try to give a quick preview of it without going into much details of the play of emotions, sacrifice, motherly love, and the likes.  The construction of the...

Who knows what the exact reason is. All I know is, among the many numbers that represent and define Life and Nature, pi has always been one of my favorites. There obviously are many reasons why it is a great number. However, those were not the sole contributors.  The beauty of pi being an "irrational number" can never be stressed enough. One can never "know" it's exact value. It goes on and on. What can be more beautiful than that! It's almost like a forever journey, full of surprises, with no known patterns or resemblances. Like life!  Look around or better look inside. Wherever you look, you will find pi. It's presence can be felt in every form and shape, be it the shape of our pupils, the sun, or even the flowers. It forms the basis of creation for all life forms, be it in the stripes of a zebra, spots of a leopard, or even our own DNA, All this cannot just be coincidence. To a patternless number that is the reason behind almost every pattern. Truly w...

A dreamy afternoon In the lap of shining rays And a faint hum From the distant days An old bracelet And a forgotten Ring In the chest of memories From the beautiful Spring Sensed in the music Like a kaleidoscopic reel That utopian smile And the blushing beat I feel Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

मौसम में है नूर आज भी वही जैसे कल की खिलती धूप में थी महकी हुई है हवा आज भी वैसे है किरणों में आज फिरसे वही खुशी फिर भी कुछ तो था नया शायद आसमान की अंगड़ाईयों में सुनहरे बादल ओढ़े थे आंचल या तेरे लबों से पिघलती हंसी की खनक थी थी सरगोशी या सरगम में झंकार नया कैसा अनोखा था ये ड़गर साज़ के अनोखे आगाज़ का ना थी मुझको कोई खबर बेखुदी में था करार..और सवाल भी जादू अब कुछ ऐसा छाया था मुस्काते रहे हम सोच में ऐसे ना साँसों का पता चला...हुआ है अब कुछ ऐसा असर यूँ इस कदर खो जाएगा ये दिल धड़कन को कहां थी ख़बर चाह भी तुम, सफ़र भी तुम तुम हो ख़यालों में शामिल  Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

Like a curious child Is your innocent vibe With a sunshine smile You brighten up life Nonchalant at times And at times shy Alluring...but relatable I don't know why Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

I wonder..... Of the angelic feelings That the dawning Sun invokes in you Of the redolent stories That the zephyr whispers to you Of the eloquent memories That the twilight paints for you Of the sapphire dreams That the velvety night weaves for you And of the enigmatic Love That our hearts murmur to me and you. Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

Is it you, where my heart belongs Or was it just imagination prolonged Thoughts of you stir my core Like northern lights in the sky azure. I breath the air, I feel your scent The enigma is but magnificent. I have no other clue, If that was all, or it indeed is true. I see Love, I remember you! The sun reminds me of your smile anew. Without a reason, You cannot be just a figment of my imagination! Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

Ventured into territories I had never explored  Was it your dreamy gaze Or your smile That I adored? Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

The music of your heart Has the rhythm of sunshine, Soothes my soul, That melody I will enshrine. Everytime you smile With your soul stirring gaze, The sun brightens up And I am left in daze. Charm of your thoughts And the love in your voice, Enthralls me, my beloved And the stars rejoice. Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

"Life has come a full circle". You and I might have heard this statement at some point in time. Why a circle? Why not a square? Or a triangle? It could have been any other shape, but we choose circle. A circle represents so much more than one would care to venture. Look around, and observe...it's everywhere. A circle gives a sense of totality, completeness,  and universalism . It has no beginning, nor an ending, like eternity. Everything is equal and uniform. It represents true perfection, timelessness, life force, and much more. How does a clock move? What about yin and yang? How about the Yuga wheels and zodiacs? These are the more commonly observable parameters. There's much more about this magical shape (and extensions of it, like a sphere). We can go on discussing about how it means almost everything in the universe, in divinity, spirituality, and in cosmic references. However, let's hold on to it for now. The next thing to brood over is how do we define a ci...

Certain things are better when they are left unexplained;  certain other things are better when they are explained properly. Then there are those which can never be explained. Not everything can be explained. They are designed to be that way. However, somehow we gravitate in our futile attempt to fathom the inexplicable. Love is ineffable, indescribable.  It is also not imperative to have a reason to love. How do you provide reason for something so innate, so fundamental? O ne might be happy for some reason, though always a reason is not needed. However, with love, a reason can never be associated. Where there is a reason, there's no love. Yo u do not love because....; you simply love. One might ask: love what, or whom. I do not feel that it is indispensable either. Love need not be personified always. It need not be directed towards any person. Love a feeling, love a thought, or just love. Yes, just love. It is an intrinsic quality. It is elemental. You don't need something ...

The smile of the afternoon sun, Spanned the cosmos with joy and elation, Warmth of the embrace said it all, Of desired scents that charm and enthrall. Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

The noon blazoned the transpiring moments, With sanguine aspiration and mirth, Proclaimed with love, the kiss of faith, Adorned the celestial rays on earth. Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.

The dawn enlivened the horizon, Gloried in hope and dressed in joyous attire, A golden vow etched till eternity, Braided in the aroma of endearing desire. Copyright © 2021 Ipsita Contemplates. All Rights Reserved.